a duck, stranded

there is a duck sitting on top of my neighbor's roof. We were awakened this morning by the sound of it quacking. It's usual to hear the chatter of birds first thing in the morning, but I have never woken up to the cry of a duck. And this duck is crying, and appealing, and calling. She seems truly distressed. Was she migrating with a flock and did she mistakenly land on the roof? How did she get there and why? How will she get down, and where will she go? I went outside to try to talk her down. My husband opened the window and said, "You do know that you're out there talking to a duck..."

Being woken in the morning by a duck in distress makes me think about how beings come into our lives, sometimes just for a moment, to wake us up. This duck has awakened so much empathy and compassion in me this morning. And she reminds me that all over the world, there are beings who are lost, or lonely, or stranded, or abandoned. I cannot physically save this duck. Nor can I physically save all the beings who are suffering. But I can hold them all in my heart. I can take a few moments to sit, close my eyes, and try to send my spirit out to them all, to help them and keep them safe from suffering. So please, take a moment, for all who are suffering, and for the duck.